An exercise of will, part 2

[darkemeralds]

Today I'm knitting. Knitting is part of my Big Plan For Self-Improvement In 2012.

It's taken years, but I've finally accepted that "self-improvement" doesn't mean changing what I am. It means being better at what I am.

Well, what I am, among other things, is a craftswoman, and I like knitting. So I've decided that 2012 is the year I become as good a knitter in reality as I am in my imagination



I've defined four knitting skills* I want to master, and four big projects** that those skills will help me achieve this year.



My first proving ground is an Aran-style cardigan, which I started in November. Last night I finished the second sleeve, and this morning I looked at those sleeves in the proverbial cold light of day.

It wasn't a happy moment.

I told myself some stories about how I could make them work. Tight forearms could be a style statement...yeah! Nobody will notice the weird leg-o'mutton line of the shoulder...right?

I argued with myself for fifteen minutes before I finally admitted that the sleeves were simply wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. A month's worth of knitting, wasted.



In The Practicing Mind, Thomas Sterner proposes a simple model for any practice, drawn from Buddhist tradition: Do, Observe, Correct.

Well, I'd Done, and, like most hurried Westerners, I was about to Re-Do. I always just Re-Do. It is the slowest, most inefficient way to improve at anything, but it's the way our entire society seems to favor. "Again! Repeat! Go-go-go!" We hurry to do it wrong one more time. Only the naturally gifted move ahead, while we sacrifice loads of potential talent on the altar of haste.

Just as I was about to start ripping those sleeves out, something went *ping*. It said, "Slow down. You're about to make the same mistakes again."

So before I raveled a single stitch, I Observed. I checked my math and found my error. I measured everything again. I acknowledged a second problem with the sleeves that I'd been ignoring. I photographed, annotated, and Evernoted. I updated my written pattern.

Then I ripped the sleeves back to the shoulders and started them all over again.

This time, all the uncertainty and wild-ass guesswork of the careless first Doing are gone. This is Correction, and I know it, and so the work is calmer, more confident, more regular. Faster, even. It's better.

I think I'm beginning to understand these magical people who consistently produce high-quality work without angst. I think I might be able to become one of them.

It's about time.

*matching increases and decreases, Kitchener grafting and bind-off, short-row shaping, top-down raglan shoulders

**Two cardigans, a jacket, and possibly a pullover.

Comments

[scribblemoose]

What an interesting thought. It's a subtle difference in the idea of what constitutes 'practise' isn't it? The addition of mindfulness to the process converts it from random to planned learning.

Good luck with the knitting! I'm just about to start on my first knitting project in about fifteen years, very exciting!

[darkemeralds]

That's it exactly! In my upbringing, "practice" just meant "keep repeating." There was always a sense that repetition alone would magically impart all needed improvements.

It imparts some, for sure: it stores the steps of a dance in muscle-memory and helps you memorize the alto line of the motet and those 501 French Verbs. Sewing lots of patterns and making lots of mistakes as a young girl certainly made me a better seamstress--albeit slowly.

But I don't think I can remember a single instance of a teacher having time to help me observe my own mistakes, analyze them, and correct them specifically and mindfully.

My mind keeps going to the amazing prodigies coming out of Asian schools. I'm sure the 18-year-old Chinese violin virtuoso has suffered endless repetition (and probably lots of pain and heartache), but I can't help wondering if an embedded Do-Observe-Correct practice style doesn't account for a lot of the achievement.

[darkemeralds]

PS: What are you going to be knitting? I'd love to see if you care to share.

[scribblemoose]

When I worked at the college I did a lot of work on methods of learning and especially what constituted effective feedback from teachers. Again and again it was made clear that formative feedback - get the student to perform a task (be it an essay, a test or a practical task)/give detailed feedback on how it can be improved/student tries again/further feedback given - not only gets best results, but teaches the student how to best evaluate and develop their own practice, so they become efficient independent learners.

And yet, the number of teachers who actually do this is so small!

[darkemeralds]

Formative feedback. I like that term! I would imagine that in addition to improving the student's skills and performance, the method also helps the teacher continue to improve.

It is a time-consuming process, however, and it strikes me that it would have to be strongly supported by the whole system to be practical. I'd love to experience an environment like that. I honestly don't think I ever have. Maybe in kindergarten.

[scribblemoose]

I've decided to start with a simple shawl for my Mum. I wanted to knit something for her because she was the one who taught me to knit, and kept me in jumpers and socks for most of my childhood! She's 90 now (still fit, active and knitting, I'm pleased to say) and feels the cold a bit when she's out with friends (her social life is way better than mine) so I thought she might like a shawl and it's difficult to buy nice ones in the shop that don't swamp her as she's a tiny wee person!

Plus, it looks like a straightforward pattern to ease my way back with! I've bought some lovely soft Mirasol yarn in a gorgeous blue - I was amazed at the number of yarns my local shop had to choose from. Last time I went in a wool shop (about a decade ago!) there were only big industrial brands, uniform colours - now there's all these lovely exotic fair traded yarns and some beautiful local ones - it seems Yorkshire has a thriving wool-dyeing industry! Shouldn't be surprised really, there are a LOT of sheep...

As you can tell I'm still very excited about this! One last work project to get through for today and then I'm going to cast on... :)

[darkemeralds]

Oh, that's a lovely shawl! Not so lacy that it lets all the cold air through, but lacy enough to be feminine and pretty.

Isn't today's yarn selection incredible? I just go nuts yarn shopping online. I regret not buying some Ronaldsay wool while I was in Orkney, but I didn't discover it existed till I saw a display of it at Kirkwall airport just as I was leaving.

Still, there's some wonderful wool being spun here locally and I'm leaning heavily toward an All-Oregon sweater for my next project.